Panama Canal Watershed Biodiversity Conservation
The Panama Canal is vital to the world’s economy. A significant global transportation hub, the canal represents an important economic maritime route for approximately 14,000 ships each year.
The Panama Canal watershed contains significant biodiversity. The river provides drinking water and electricity for the cities of Panama and Colon, where 55 percent of Panamanians live. Certain areas of the watershed are facing unplanned urbanization, deforestation, and pollution due to domestic and industrial waste. Agricultural activities are threatening the drinking water supply.
Tetra Tech provided the following technical services for the Panama Canal Authority-funded Sustainable Development and Integrated Water Resources Management Framework for the Panama Canal Watershed Project:
- Designed the methodological and instrumental mechanisms for implementing the activities described in the Sustainable Development Plan and Integrated Water Resources Management of the Panama Canal watershed
- Developed a GIS for monitoring land use changes and developed a methodological report for computing carbon sequestration in two selected pilot sub-watersheds
- Developed a system of indicators for follow-up and evaluating the Watershed Management Plan in terms of performance (progress towards achieving objectives and scenarios) and effect of actions proposed